Sony camcorders
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Sony produces a number of camcorders.
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[edit] Sony HDR-HC1
The Sony HDR-HC1, introduced in mid 2005 (MSRP 1999$ US), was the first HDV CMOS camcorder to support 1080i. The CMOS sensor has a resolution of 1440x1920 for digital still pictures and captures video at 1440x1080 interlaced, which is the resolution defined for HDV 1080i. The camera may also use the extra pixels for digital image stabilization.
The camcorder can also convert the captured HDV data to DV data for editing the video using non-linear editing systems which do not support HDV or for creating edits which are viewable on non-HDTV television sets.
[edit] Sony HDR-FX1
The Sony HDR-FX1, introduced in late 2004, was the first HDV 3CCD camcorder which supported 1080i (albiet at 1440 X 1080 resolution with 4:2:0 color sampling). The Sony HVR-Z1U is the "professional" version of this camera with additional features such as balanced XLR audio inputs, DVCAM recording, and extended DSP capabilities (i.e. cine/gamma controls)).
In September of 2006, Sony announced FX1's successor - Sony HDR-FX7. The notable differences include a change from a three-CCD sensor to a three-CMOS one.
[edit] Cineframe
The FX1 offers Cineframe shooting modes at 30, 25, and 24 frames per second. The camera is still using an interlaced image but extracts progressive images from individual fields by doubling them. The 30fps and 24fps do not offer the same resolution as true progressive scanning but may nonetheless be useful for recording progressive images without interlacing. Furthermore, the 24fps Cineframe shooting mode does not offer the same resolution or motion cadence as true 24fps progressive scanning.
[edit] Specifications
The HDR-FX1 includes three 1/3-inch 16:9 1.12 Megapixel gross CCDs. Each CCD measures 960 x 1080 pixels. The HDR-FX1 also includes a 12x optical Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T* lens, a 3.5-inch LCD screen, a zoom ring, focus ring, and an iris / aperture ring.
[edit] Sony HDR-FX7
The Sony HDR-FX7, was introduced in September of 2006, almost two years after the introduction of Sony's first HDV camcorder, Sony HDR-FX1. The new camcorder is the first camcorder below $3,000 to offer full 1080 HD resolution with a three-chip sensor.
- Resolution: Sony claims "full" 1080 HD
- Sensor: changed to 3 x 1/4” ClearVid CMOS
- Light sensitivity: worse by 33% (4lux)
- Zoom: increased to 20x optical zoom
- Lens/filter: decreased to 62mm
- Video out: included HDMI
- Weight: reduced to 1.6 kg (3.52 lb.)
The company line (as expressed by Harry Haruna, Manager of Camcorder Product Planning for Sony USA) is that the new Sony HDR-FX7 will have a much improved resolution (full 1080 HD) when the lighting is good. In low-light situations, Sony FX1 will still produce better results.
[edit] Sony HDR-SR1
The Sony HDR-SR1, introduced in late 2006, was the first high definition hard disk drive based camcorder from Sony. It launched with a 30 gigabyte internal drive and - along with the Sony HDR-UX1 - is the first camcorder that records high definition video in AVCHD format.
